Button positioning means



Jan. 12, 1937. MlLLER BUTTON POSITIONING MEANS Filed Feb. 20, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet lv Jan. 12, 1937. H.-MILLER BUTTON POSITIONING MEANS Filed Feb. 20, 1936 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR PAT NT A OFFICE BUTTON POSITIONING MEANS Henry Miller,

Waterbury, Conn, assignor to Application February 20, 1936, Serial No. 64,897

18 Claims.

The present invention relates to a mechanism for positioning or orienting buttons in a buttonieeding and attaching machine so as to register the holes in a button or a design on the button top, or both the holes and the design with the button-attaching means.

An object of theinvention is to provide a mechanism which will orient buttons as they are fed from a raceway or track and present them to a button-attaching station in registering relation to the attaching means. A further object is to accomplish this with respect to sew-on buttons, tack buttons which are to be secured to articles by staples and other analogous fastening devices. A further object is to orient and present buttons having a design on their top, when fed down a raceway or track, to a buttonattaching station, with the design on the button top in a definite relation to insure attaching the button to an article with the design in desired position thereon. A further object is to accomplish such registry entirely automatically.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention I accomplish by providing mechanism for inferred embodiments of my invention, and wherein: 40 Figure 1 is a fractional side elevation of a button-orienting mechanism according to my invention, parts thereof being broken away to more clearly show details of construction.

Fig. 2 is a. fractional front elevation of the 45 mechanism shown in Fig. 1 when viewed from the left thereof.

. 'Figs. 3, 4 and 5, are sections taken substantially along the planes of the lines 3-3, 4-4 and 55, respectively, of Fig. 1. 50 Fig. 5a is an underface view of a detail of the invention shown in Figs. '1 to 5.

Fig. 5b is a section taken along the plane of the line b-b of Fig. 5a.

Fig. 6 is a fractional side elevation of a slightl 55 modified form of the invention.

tercepting the buttons as they move, preferably Fig. '7 is a section taken substantially along the plane of the line l-l of Fig. 6.

Figs. 8 and 9 are a front elevation and a side elevation, respectively, of a detail of the invention shown in Figs. 6 and 7. 5

Figs. 10, 11 and 12 illustrate top plan views of types of buttons capable of being oriented by the mechanism of the present invention.

Figs. 10a, 11a and 12a. are side elevations of the buttons shown in Figs. 10, 11 and 12, respecl0 tively.

Fig. 1% is a bottom plan view of the button shown in Fig. 12.

The mechanism of the present invention, it is to be understood, is adapted for use in con- 15 junction with conventional button-feeding and attaching machines wherein the buttons are adapted to be fed down a track or raceway to a button-attaching station whereat they may be secured to various articles by the button-attaching means. Where the buttons are of the sewon type, for example, as illustrated in Fig. 10, the button-attaching means will be in the form of a button sew-on mechanism. Where the buttons are of the staple type shown in Fig. 11 or of the tack button type shown in Fig. 12, suitable means for supplying the staples or the tacks to the attaching station, and for riveting them onto the buttons, will, of course, be employed, as is now conventional.

Referring now to Figs. 1 to 5 of the drawings, the orienting or button-positioning mechanism comprises the track or raceway 20, comprising a pair of spaced rails 21, 22, providing an undercut groove down which buttons 23 may move by the action of gravity. The buttons 23 herein illustrated areof the type shown in Fig. 12 and comprise a hub 24 having an enlarged head over which is mounted a shell 25 which may have a suitable design or manufacturer's trade mark 40 on the top thereof, herein indicated by the reference numeral 26, the said shell having an integral tab 21 which is bent back over the under side of the top to provide a raised projection thereat and bears a definite relation to the design 26. If desired, the under side of the button head behind the bent back tab may be formed with an annular groove 21. The specific type of button shown in Fig. 12 constitutes an invention of Royal Huckins, for which an application for patent has heretofore been filed in the United States Patent Oflice and bears Serial No. 54,051.

At the lower end of the raceway 20 there is provided a. substantially semi-circular guide 28 with which cooperates a cut-ofi device 33. Preferably the cut-off device is in the form of a disk of substantially circular form and of a radius somewhat less than the outer radius of the curved portion of the guide 23. This cut-01'1" device extends transversely across the lower end. of. the raceway and is formed in its peripheral surface with a recess 3| having a part of its wall of substantially semi-circular form and of a diameter substantially equal to the diameter of the head of the button to be received therein and a straight edge portion provided for clearance. The disk 33 has a central opening 32 through which extends the enlarged shank portion of a supporting stud 33. On its front face the disk 33 is formed with a diametrical groove 35 which extends beyond the central opening 32, and on its rear face with a semi-circular recess 33 which is concentric to the central opening. The functions for the groove 35 and the recess 33 will presently appear.

Mounted on the enlarged shank portion of the stud 33 is a gear 31 having a diametrical rib 33 on its inner face engaging in the groove 35 on the disk, the gear and the disk being mounted for unitary movement on the rear plate 34 of the guide 28 by a nut 39 engaging over a reduced threaded end of the stud 33.

In mesh with the teeth of the gear 31 are the teeth of a gear sector 40 formed at one end of a lever 4|, the other end of which carries a roller 42 adapted to move over a cam (not shown) on a shaft of the machine for imparting rotational oscillatory movement to the cut-off device 30 through the gear 31. The lever 4| is pivotally mounted intermediate its ends upon a stud 43 and is preferably formed of two parts, namely, part 4|a, which carries the gear sector, and part 4|b, which carries the roller 42. This twopart lever is provided in order to avoid introducing undue strains upon the cut-off device, as will presently appear. With this object in view, the adjacent ends of these lever parts ,are mounted on the stud 43, the part 4|a having a terminal shoulder 4lc adapted to support a stud 44 mounted in part 4|b. To enable this pivoted lever to take up and cushion the strains, I have .shown said lever parts as held in cushioned alignment by a heavy coil spring 45 which engages around the stud 43 and bears at one end over the pin 44, and at its other end over a pin 43 mounted on the lever 4|a. A second spring 41 which also engages about the stud 43 bears at one end over the pin 44, and at its other end is mounted upon a pin 48 secured to a rigid part of the machine frame. For limiting the oscillatory movement of the disk 30 to the confines of the arcuate recess 33, a headed pin 53 which is mounted on the plate 34 engages within said arcuate recess.

Mounted on the front face of the disk 30 in substantially overlying relation to the recess 3| is -a locator device, indicated generally by the reference character 5|. This locator consists of a plate-like element 52 having at one edge thereof a pair of projecting lugs 53 which cooperatively engage a pair of lugs 54 carried by a plate 55 secured to the face of the disk 30, the locator being spring-mounted on said disk by means of a pin 53 extending through the lugs 53 and 54, and a coil spring 53' encircling said pin, the said spring having extended free ends bearing respectively against the plate 55 and the outer face of the plate element 52. The plate element 52 has its side opposite to that provided with the lugs 53 formed with a cut-out recess 51, one edge of which is arcuate and has a radius corresponding to the radius of the hub of the tack button with which it is to cooperate and a straight edge leading from said arcuate edge. The straight edge of said recess is normally in coincident relation with the straight edge of the recess 3| in the disk 33 and the arcuate edge is normally in concentric relation to the arcuate portion of said recess 3|. The plate element 52 on its rear face is formed with a lug 53normally projecting into the recess 3| in the disk 33, and said lug has at its inner face a recess 33 of a width and depth adapted to engage the tab 2'8 on the button of Fig. 12. The lug 53 also has on its inner end an inwardly-directed arcuate bead 59a adapted to engage in the annular groove 27- on the back of the button of Fig. 12 to insure engagement of the tab 21 within the recess 59. The plate element 52 also has an upstanding lug 33 which is adapted to cooperate with a cam 3| formed on the plate 34 at the lower end of the track 20 adjacent the cut-off device and to be moved by said cam about the pivot pin 53 to permit a button from the track to enter the recess 3| in the cut-ofi device.

The arcuate guide 23 comprises, in addition to the plate 34, an arcuate cover plate 28' and a pair of arcuate friction members 32 and 33 pivotally butt-jointed together at their adjacent ends upon a pin 34. The members 32 and 33 at their opposite endscarry pins 35 and 33, respectively, and said members 32 and 33 are mounted for limited movement with respect to the plate 34 by being disposed Within a rabbeted recess 31 in said plate. To permit of such limited movement the pins 34, and 33, each extend through an enlarged opening in the rabbeted portion of said plate 34. The pins 34, 35 and 33, have connected theretohelical coil springs 38, 39' and 13, respectively, each of which is anchored to a pin mounted on the plate 34. The springs 38, 39 and 13, act upon the arcuate members 32 and '63 to urge them inwardly toward the periphery of the cut-off disk 30 and thus function to impose a frictional engagement upon the periphery of a button disposed within the cut-off device during its movement with the disk 33 to rotate the button about its axis. To further insure this frictional engagement the members 32 and 33 are formed with aligned grooves 12 for engaging the peripheral edge of the button while in the cut-ofi disk. During the course of this axial rotation of the button, the bead 59a on the locator which is held in spring-pressed engagement with the under side of the button, will ride over the tab 21 on the button until the recess 59 is brought into alignment with said tab 21, whereupon the tab 21 will engage in the recess 59 and the bead 53a will engage in the groove 21' to restrain the button against further rotation about its axis, although it will be carried along with the cut-off disk until it reaches its transfer point or station.

The plate 34 at its lower end rearwardly of the transfer station for the cut-off device is formed with a pair of rearwardly-extending parallellyspaced lugs 15 between which is spring-mounted a gate member 16 having a pair of cars 11. Extending through the lugs 15 and the ears TI is a pin 18 which is encircled by a coil spring 19, one free end of which bears against a back of the plate 34 and the other free end against the back of the gate 13 to normally hold the gate 13 in alignment with the plate 34.

At the transfer station of the cut-off device, which is herein shown as diametrically opposite to the raceway or track 20, is a pusher rod 33 which is reciprocable transversely to the cut-oil device by a cam/(not shown), and is adapted to receive the button from the cut-off device in its oriented position and move it to the button-attaching station. The pusher rod at its free end is bifurcated to provide a pair of fingers 8|, the space between which is substantially equal to the diameter of the hub of the button to be transferred thereby. Said pusher rod at the inner end of said bifurcation is provided with an inclined wall 82 and a shoulder 83 which function to guide and properly support the button as it is being moved through the gate 16 against the tension of the spring 19, in the course of which movement the bifurcated end of the pusher rod will receive the button without disturbing its oriented position with respect to its axis. Upon the pusher rod reaching the end of its forward movement it will present the button in its oriented position to a pair of jaws 85 at the buttonattaching station and will deposit said button upon said jaws 85 as the pusher rod recedes from said forwardmost position. At the button-attaching station, there will, of course, be-provided a button-attaching means, herein shown as a settingpunch 86, adapted to cooperate with an anvil 81 upon which a tack or staple 88 will be presented by any well known means for uniting engagement with thebutton.

In Figs. 6 to 9 I have shown the application of my invention to a staple button of the type 'shown in Fig. 1l. In this connection the only change necessary in the construction of the machine is; in the character of the locator means 5! which will be designed'to orient the button 89 byrrneans of a pair of spaced pins 90 adapted to engage in the diametrically spaced openings Si in the hub of the button. It will be appreciated, however, that a button of the type shown in Fig. 11 may also have a design on its top, and means on its back bearing a definite relation to the design, and that the locator meanswili', in such instance, be designed to cooperate with both the holesin the button and the meanson the back of the button which bear a definite relation to the design for both orienting the design and registering the openings inthe button for presentation at the button-attaching station. It will also be appreciated that by suitable modification of the locator, a sew-on button 92 of the type shown in Fig. 10 may be readily oriented and presented to the button-attaching station with the holes in the button in alignment or registry with a needle for sewing the button onto an article.

From the foregoing detailed description it is thought that the construction and the operation track becomes loaded solidly with buttons, the.

bottom one resting on the periphery of the cutoff disk 30. As the machine is operated, a rotative movement is imparted to the cut-ofl disk 30, bringing the recess 3| thereof into the dotted line position thereof shown in Fig. 1. As the disk is brought into this position the locator will be moved away from the disk by engagement of the lug 60 over the cam 6|,whereupon aibutton from the track will move, due to gravity, into said recess. The disk is then rotated in the opposite direction,

causing the button within the recess to move within the periphery of the cut-off past the friction guides 62 and 63, which rotate the button about its axis as it is carried to its transfer station whereat the pusher is located. During the travel of this button from its original position at the bottom of the track until it is presented in front of the pusher, it is being rotated or spun about its axis, and during this rotating action the locator means carried by the cut-ofi disk engages a registeringmeans on the button restraining it against further rotation. In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 5 the registering means on the button are the tab 21 and the groove 27, while the complemental means on the locator are the recess 59 and bead 5911. From the point in front of the pusher the button is carried forward into the pair of jaws 85 at the button-attaching station directly under the setting die 86. In the course of transferring the button from the transfer station to the attaching station the button is moved past the gate 16, which, by imposing a frictional resistance upon the button as it passes under said gate, operates to keep the button in close relation to the pusher, preventing any rotation of the button and thus maintaining its oriented position with relation to its axis. In this oriented position it is deposited at the buttonattaching station.

The invention, it will be appreciated, is susceptible of modification and change within the range of engineering skill, and I therefore do not wish to be limited to the details of construction herein disclosed except as limited by the spirit of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a cut-ofi device adapted to periodically receive a button from the track, means for rotating'the button about its axis in the cut-off device, and a locator having means independent of the means for rotating the button for engaging the registering means on the button during rotation thereof to restrain the button against further rotation.

- 2. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a cut-off device adapted to periodically receive a button from the track, means for rotating the button about its axis in the cut-off device, a locator having means independent of the means for rotating the button for engaging the registering means on the button during rotation thereof to restrain the button against further rotation, and means for transferring the button engaged by the locator without disturbing its orientated position with respect to the axis of the button.

3. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a cut-off device movable relatively to the track and adapted to receive a button therefrom and rotate it about its axis, and means on said cut-off adapted to engage the registering means on the buttons during rotation thereof to restrain the button agains further rotation to orientate it with relation to the cut-oif device.

4. A feeding mechanism for butons or the like having 'means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a cut-off device movable relatively to the track and adapted to receive a button therefrom and rotate it about its axis, means on said cut-off adapted to engage the registering means on the button during rotation thereof to restrain the button against further rotation to orientate it with relation to the cut-off device, a. button-attaching station, and means for trans- I ton therefrom and impart to ,it a motion of translation and rotation about its axis, and means on said cut-off adapted to engage the registering means on the buttons in the course of its movements with the cut-off device to restrain the button against further rotation to orientate it with relation to the cut-off device.

6. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a cut-off device movable relatively to the track and adapted to receive a button therefromand impart to it a motion of translation, friction means for engaging the periphery of a button in the cut-ofi' means for rotating it about its axis, and meanson said cut-off adapt- .ed to engage the registeringmeans on the buttons in the course of its movements with the cutoff device to restrain the button against further rotation to orientate it with relation to the cutoif device.

7. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a track along which such buttons can move, a rotatable cut-off device disposed transversely to the track adapted to periodicallyreceive a button from the track, means for rotating the button about its axis in the cutoff device, a locator movable with the cut-off device and having means for engaging the registering means on the button during rotation thereof to restrain the button against further rotation, and spring means for pressing the locator into button-engaging relation.

8. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having means thereon capable of registering the buttons, comprising a raceway down which such buttons can move by gravity, a rotatable cut-oil device disposed and movable transversely to the raceway adapted to periodically receive a button from the raceway, means cooperating with the cut-off device to rotate the button about its axis as it is carried by the cut-off device in its movement, a locator movable with the cut-off device in a position overlying the button-receiving portion of the cut-oil device, spring means normally pressing the locator into button-engaging position, said locator having means for engaging the registering means on the button in the cut-off device when said registering means come into complemental relation to the engaging means on the locator to restrain the button against further rotation but not interfering with its continued movement with the cut-off device, and means at the limit of movement of the cut-ofl device for engaging and transferring the button from the cut-off device to a.button-attaching station without disturbing the orientated position of the button with respect to its axis. 7

9. A feeding mechanism according to claim 8,

wherein the. transferring means turns the button through an angle relatively to its axis without affecting the orientated relation of the registering means on said button to its axis.

a 10. A feeding mechanism according to claim 8, wherein there is a spring-pressed gate at the limit of movement of the cut-01f device, and wherein the transferring means is movable at an angle relatively to the axis of, the button to turn the button through an angle relatively to its axis and wherein the spring-pressed gate serves to impose a frictional resistance upon the button to prevent the turning thereof about, its axis during the transferring operation.

11. A feeding mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cut-off device is a rotatable disk having a peripheral recess to receive a button from the track and wherein the means for rotating the button about its axis is an arcuate element disposed to frictionaly engage the periphery of the button while it is being carried by the disk cut-off device.

12. A feeding mechanism accordingto claim 1, wherein the cut-off device is an oscillatable disk having a peripheral recess to receive a button from the track and wherein the means for rotating the button about its axis is a segmental arcuate element disposed to frictionally engage the periphery of the button while it is being carried by the disk cut-off device.

13. A feeding mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cut-ofl device is a reciprocable element having a recess therein to receive a button from the track and wherein the locator is movable with the cut-off device and has its locating means for engaging the registering means on the button ve ng and adapted to extend into the recess in the cut-off device.

14. A feeding mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the cut-off device is a reciprocable element having a recess therein to receive a button from the track and wherein the locator is movable with'the cut-01f device and has its locating means for engaging the registering means on the button of substantially complemental form to said registering means overlying the recess in the cut-off device.

15. A feeding mechanism according to claim 1,

' wherein the cut-off device is a reciprocable eleback bearing a definite relation to the design, a

track along which such buttons can move, a cutoif deviceadapted to periodically receive a button from the track, means for rotating the button about its axis while inif the cut-off device and a locator having means for engaging the means on the back of the button during rotation thereof for restraining the button against further rotation about its axis and means for presenting said button to a button-attaching station in its orientated position with respect to its axis.

17. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like having a top and a hub, a design on their top and means on the back extending beyond the surface contour of said back and bearing a definite relaback during rotation thereof for restraining the button against further rotation about its axis and means for presenting said button to a buttonattaching station in its orientated position with respect to its axis.

18. A feeding mechanism for buttons or the like, t

each having a plurality of openings therein disposed s'ymmetrically with respect to its axis, a. track along which such buttons can move, a cutofi device adapted to periodically receive a button from the track, means for rotating the button 5 about its axis while in the cut-off device, and a. iocator independent of the means for rotating the button having a plurality of pins for engaging in at least two of the openings in the button for restraining -the button against further rotation 10 about its axis.

HENRY MILLER. 

